Adventure to Home
by DullStorm
Summary: AU NaLu: What's a rich, beautiful, smart, and sophisticated girl supposed to do when her father dies? Of course spend a lot of money. Oh, but not on clothes, or expensive houses. No. Lucy Heartfilia was going to spend her money on an adventure. Not just any adventure either. She was going to travel the world and see all the great wonders. But with a homeless man? Oh Lucy...
1. Chapter 1

**Welcome! I'm really excited to share this story with you guys. I woke up one morning and was like... I need to write this. It was a moment of motivation and an idea I just couldn't stop. It just kept flowing. I kinda hope this is an original idea too.**

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What's a rich, beautiful, smart, and sophisticated girl supposed to do when her father dies? Of course spend a lot of money. Oh, but not on clothes, or expensive houses. No. Lucy Heartfilia was going to spend her money on an adventure. Not just any adventure either. She was going to travel the world and see all the great wonders. She already had a plan.

Since she is starting her grand adventure in middle of April, she was going to do her lifelong dream. She was going to swim with the whale sharks off of the cost of western Australia. That was her first stop. From there she had a few other things she wanted to do, but she also wanted to make sure the person she took with her had a say in what they were going to do. So for now, she just had two tickets to Perth Airport in Australia. Her companion for this would be none other than Levy McGarden. Her best friend in the world. Levy was 25 and already in a top position of the FBI or whatever... Lucy just knew that without Levy, the world would probably be destroyed. She was convinced Levy was a superhero.

"Are you almost ready, beautiful?" Lucy smiled as she folded her last article of clothing in her luggage. She turned to face her long time companion and bodyguard.

"Yes, Leo. Has the taxi picked up Levy yet?" The blonde stood after zipping up the bag. She could feel the excitement racing through her. Despite her father's passing, Lucy was still ready to live life. Her father and her had a dropout years ago so their relationship wasn't stable. It really hadn't been ever since her mom had died. She had only been seven when she lost her mother. Her mother, Layla had been the peace keeper of the house. She brought together the family. It was hard on both her and her father, Jude. It had made a rough gap between them. But this past year, Lucy and Jude had made it a priority to call once a month. It wasn't anything great or amazing, but it kept them together. She had been devastated when she her her father had died. She remembered demanding that Levy and Leo sleep with her for the night. It's been four weeks since and now she was ready to do something awesome. She had set up her apartment lease so that way when she came back in a year or so, it would still be hers and she wouldn't have rent to pay over her trip. She was rich, but she was still smart with her money.

"I haven't heard word on the taxi yet but I assume everything is still going as planned. Shall we go then, lovely?" Leo flashed her a seductive grin and held out his hand. Lucy chuckled when she saw his face drop as soon as she put her luggage in his hand knowing he had expected her grab his hand with hers.

"Yes we shall, and don't drag my luggage. I don't want the wheels to get dirty till my trip officially starts." She winked at him over her shoulder and walked out of her complex. At the end of the entrance she turned to look at her home. It would be a long time before she came back here. Opening her phone she turned around and held it high in the air. "Leo, smile!" She saw him grinning while pulling the purple luggage behind him in the camera. She gave her best grin and a peace sign and snapped the picture. She set it as her phone background and then put it back in her side bag.

Leo stood beside her as they waited for the car. Leo kept glancing at her and couldn't help but be worried for her. She was his everything. Since they were kids they were together. They took martial arts, dance, and everything in between together growing up. He didn't want to leave her side. Not for almost two years. Even though she had agreed they would meet up in some countries, it hurt knowing that he wouldn't be enjoying her adventure with her. He loved her.

"Lucy... Are you sure you don't want me to come? I can be extra protection for you." He asked for the hundredth time. He gave a small smirk when he saw her huff and cross her arms, and with the shirt she was wearing it caused her breasts to look lovely. He cast his eyes to hers and saw the determination shining through her cocoa eyes. He knew she wasn't going to change her mind and if he were to be honest with himself, it broke his heart.

"I'm going to be fine. Remember, my father had bodyguards all over the world. As soon as we land in Australia, Scorpio will be there waiting for us." Lucy could see the devastation on his face. She understood it quite well. She was going to miss him immensely. "I'll miss you too." She threw herself into his arms and held him knew she would never feel anything beyond a family bond with him and she knew he understood that. But it didn't stop her from feeling awful for leaving him like this.

Leo kissed the top of her head. "You better return in one piece. Okay?" He felt Lucy nod against his shoulder. "Good. Now stop being so mushy. The car is here." Lucy jumped from his arms and playfully swatted him.

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After a long goodbye to Leo, she got in the car and texted Levy.

' _I'm on my way! I can't wait to see you!'_

Lucy stared out the window at the passing cars wondering how many of them have an opportunity like she did. How many people got to travel the world when they're 24? She felt giddy as she saw the airport in sight. The car stopped and came to a slow hault.

"M'lady, it appears there has been an accident ahead of us. I'm afraid it might be a twenty minute delay." The driver said from the front. Lucy shrugged.

"It's fine. Afterall, I wanted to make sure we checked in 2 hours before we board. We'll be good!" Her grin relieved the driver's stress. He would have hated to be the cause of her missing her flight. Lucy turned back out to the window. She knew this area around the airport wasn't so great. It was full of homeless people, gangs, and drunk drivers. Unfortunately, this airport was the closest one that had a flight to Australia. She watched as a couple of the homeless folks gather around to see what happened. She noticed one in particular. A young man... with _pink_ hair? Weird. He seemed too young to be homeless, but she never knew. She grew up without money problems so she tried her best to keep her opinions to herself. Lucy kept her brown eyes on the man. He was captivating to say the least with his pink hair. Perhaps he wasn't homeless. But she had a feeling.

She could tell the shoes he had on were worn down to the soles. His shirt was clearly not clean and the bag he carried with him was hanging together by threads. The strange thing was his face and hair seemed perfectly fine. Then Lucy pieced it together. It was common for homeless people to live near airports. It was always filled with people and had running water. Sometimes homeless people would stay in the airport for a night or so. It was rare that they would get caught due to the continuous movement of people. Her heart went out to them. She decided then when she came back from her trip, she would donate a large sum to a homeless shelter.

When they finally made it through to the airport, Lucy excitedly leapt out of the car and grabbed her bag. She thanked the driver then went inside. She was greeted with the sights of many people in line for security. She filed in behind them. While waiting, she pulled out her phone and saw she had a missed call from Levy. She sighed and stepped out of line to call her back.

" _Lucy! I'm so glad I caught you. Are you already at the airport?"_ Lucy smiled but felt her heart drop a bit at the tone Levy was using. She sounded worried about something.

"Yeah! I was about to get in line for security check. Where are you?" The blonde looked around to see if she could see her friend yet. No sign of her blue haired friend, but she did see pink. She guessed her theory was right when she saw him go into the public bathrooms.

" _Lu… I'm really sorry. But I can't go."_

Her heart fell to her toes. She could feel her dreams shattering. "What!? Why not!? You said your boss was okay with you taking a year off!"

" _I know you're mad Lu-"_

" _Mad?_ I'm furious! Why are waiting till the last minute to tell me?"

" _I just found out-"_

"Don't tell me you're going away for another mission! Last one you went on was for five months! I can't wait five months for this trip!" Lucy knew she was acting like a child but she didn't care. She was hurt. "You promised you would go! You can't just lea-"

" _I'm pregnant!"_

"-ve me like this!" Suddenly all became just white noise to her. "What…?"

" _I said I'm pregnant. I had a suspicion but I wasn't for sure until this morning. I went to the doctor and he said I'm 7 weeks along…"_

"Oh my, Levy! What are you going to do?" All feelings of hurt left her body. Now Lucy felt like a jerk. "I'm sorry I yelled at you."

" _It's okay. I'm just sorry I didn't go to the doctor till today. But I think I'm going to have to tell Gajeel tonight. He's been talking about taking a break since I was going on that year trip with you. I guess this was the sign I wasn't ready to lose him."_ Levy sounded exhausted. Lucy understood why.

Lucy spent the next couple minutes talking to Levy. She talked about how she should call Leo whenever she needed extra hands. She also suggested things about what she thought was important to remember when you were pregnant. Then she offered to stay because Levy was her best friend and if she needed any help around her house, Lucy could be there in a flash.

" _No way, Lucy! You need to go on your trip!"_

Lucy laughed. "Well who am I supposed to ask to go? The flight leaves in less than two hours."

" _I don't know. I'm sure you'll find someone. If not you could ask a homeless person! I'm sure they would love to go on your adventure!"_ Levy joked. Somehow, Lucy actually started considering it. It's not like she had anything to lose and the person she chose had so much to gain. Then she remembered a flash of pink she saw earlier.

"I'm sure, Levy. Anyway, I'll figure something out. Love you!" She hung up and a new sense of determination filled her. She was going to hunt down that pink haired guy and bring him on her adventure. He had looked about her age and she was going to have bodyguards everywhere. So she really didn't see the danger in it. Maybe she was being stupid. Maybe even a little crazy, but she was going on this adventure one way or another.

It took her ten minutes to find him. She saw him sitting on a bench counting some change.

 _This is it._ She thought. She took a deep breath and approached him. "Hi! I'm Lucy! Mind if I sit down here?" She saw him look up in shock. He gave her a look and shrugged.

"Yeah, sure. I'm not reserving it for anyone." He scoot over to give her more space on the bench. Lucy smiled and placed herself beside him. He looked back over at her and thought she was weird. "I'm Natsu."

Lucy played with her fingers. How was she supposed to ask him on an adventure? Would it be rude to ask straight out if he was homeless? No… She had to play it didn't want to scare him off. She had little over an hour left to get this guy on board with her. "So, where you headed to?"

The question caught him off guard. "Oh… Uh… I'm flying to East Texas." He had no clue what the hell was in Texas but it was the first thing that came to him.

"That's cool. I went to Texas once for the Alamo. It was really interesting." Natsu nodded and proceeded to count out his change. "Can I see your ticket? I want to see what airline you're using." She smiled and held out her hand.

Natsu glared at her. Why did she want to see his ticket? Then he panicked. What if she was actually a security officer. Then she would kick him out and he wouldn't be able to get back inside. This was the only place he could get water from and he wasn't about to lose it. "I have to go." He got up and was about to walk away when her next words stopped him.

"Wait! I know you're homeless. I saw you on the streets out there. Please, don't walk away. I want to talk to you." She held his gaze and she could see his eyes calculating his decision. His onyx eyes didn't seem like they were going to budge. He finally closed his eyes and sat down.

"What the hell do you want from me?" He didn't look at her. She didn't expect him to. Lucy was just glad he was willing to listen to her.

"I want an adventure from you." Her words caused him to choke. An adventure? If she knew he was homeless how the hell did she think he was going to be able to give her anything? He couldn't even get a breakfast bar for himself this morning. "Look, I know it sounds crazy but I am planning a world trip. I'm leaving in an hour. I was supposed to go with my friend but turns out she's pregnant." She paused to look at him. His eyes were steady on her showing he was listening so she continued. "So, I don't have time to refund the tickets but I can change the name on it. I don't know you, but I don't think you're dangerous. I'm asking you because I saw you out there on the street near the accident. You looked genuinely concerned. Cruel people in this world don't get concerned for others. So I'm trusting you."

"You're trusting me just because I was concerned about a car accident? You're lucky to be alive if that's how you throw your trust around." He scoffed at her. But she seemed serious. What kind of lunatic asks a homeless person to get on a plane with them and travel the world? "But if you're being serious, why waste money on me through the trip? Why not just waste the ticket but then save the rest of your money along the way?"

"Well, I could do that but adventures are more fun when you share them with someone. I don't really want to go alone." She couldn't help but laugh. "Not to mention, I'm actually really rich. So money wouldn't be a problem."

Natsu just stared blankly at her. "Did you escape from an asylum or something?"

Lucy puffed her cheeks out at him. "Thats rude! I'm being serious! If you don't want to go, just tell me. I will need to find a new companion if you say no and I'm running out of time!"

Natsu thought about it. What did he really have to lose from this? He really wanted to go. Just to see if this girl was being serious. He was imagining all the kinds of fun he would have. Not to mention this airport was starting to get boring. He wanted new surroundings. Fine. She would go. But he had one question. "Where the hell are we going to first?" His grin stretched across his face. Lucy felt her excitement bubble in her stomach.

"First stop, Australia!" She leapt up and grabbed his hand. "Let's go get your name on this ticket!"

Natsu felt good for the first time. He had no clue what he did in his life but he was praying this wasn't a sick joke or a plot to murder him. He felt Lucy's energy and fed off it. It was contagious like the flu. Only it left wanting to vomit out of excitement.

He would have to think of a better analogy. Till then his grip on her hand never loosened. He let himself be dragged behind this bubbly blonde until they reached a service desk.

"Hi! Lucy Heartfilia and Levy McGarden. I had tickets reserved for first class on flight C35. I'm afraid my friend couldn't make it so I would like to change the name on it." Lucy added a wink at the service man to increase the speed she got this done. She did only have 40 minutes to get to her gate. The man behind the desk blushed.

"R-right away, ma'am. What name would you like to change?" Lucy smiled and leaned against the counter, pushing her breasts against it. "I would like to change Levy McGarden to Natsu…"

Natsu pulled out an old license. "Natsu Dragneel." The man took the ID and made a few changes to the tickets on his computer. Once they were printed out he handed them the tickets and Natsu his ID. "Thank you so much for your help!" Lucy said.

Once again Natsu was being pulled around by this girl. They Made it through security with no problems and took off for their gate. Lucy had asked if he had ever been on a plane before and found out he had and got motion sickness like crazy. She stopped at store in the airport and bought him some medicine. One for sleeping and the other for motion sickness.

While Lucy was checking out, Natsu watched her with curiosity. He never had anyone treat him so kindly as she had. Not since he had lost his father, Igneel. She was weird. That was for sure. He still couldn't help the little spark of excitement moving through him. He had never been anywhere outside the country. Hell, he had barely ever been outside of New York. He had also watched as Lucy persuaded the security to get him on board despite he didn't have a passport. Thankfully, they got him one. Apparently they owed the Heartfilia name one or now here he was. Homeless, and about to go on adventure of a lifetime with a girl he never met till today. He pinched himself constantly waiting for him to wake up. Maybe he was on drugs…

"All set! I also got you some slippers and a neck pillow. That way you can be more comfortable on the flight." Lucy grinner at her new companion while holding up a bag of goodies. "I also got some snacks too."

Yeah. Natsu was pretty sure he was high. There was no way anyone in this world was this kind to strangers. Either that or he was about to be murdered and she wanted to be out of the country for that. Somehow he didn't think this was the situation. He thanked her and offered to carry the bags.

" _NOW BOARDING FLIGHT C35. ALL FIRST APARTMENT MEMBERS PLEASE BOARD."_

Lucy jumped up and down in excitement! "Oh, Natsu, you'll love this! I got us a great room! I heard the airline has the best first class flight. They say it's like ' _your own apartment in the sky!_ " By now Natsu practically held out his hand for her to take and run with. He didn't mind it. He hadn't had any real contact with people in a long time.

"I just hope I don't get sick." As they boarded Natsu snuck in one of each of the medications she bought. "How long is this flight anyway, like an hour?"

Lucy laughed. "Natsu, you're crazy. It's almost 13 hours!" Before he could respond and cry out for help, she was dragging him along with her into a cabin walkway. A stewardess kindly showed them to their room. It was an open space but had two couches facing each other. A tv was on the wall above one of the couches and was currently playing some movie. The stewardess opened a cabinet showing them where the pillows and blankets were located for when they wanted to sleep. On the next door, she gave them a key to a private bathroom, courtesy to the Heartfilia family name. It had showers and sinks with extra pajamas in case. "Isnt this amazing? Oh, I wish Levy could've been here!"

Natsu let his jaw drop. It was such a nice little space that he was considering kicking her out and demanding she get her own. He eyed the couch with a needy look. He held himself back though. After all, this wasn't his. He was a guest, or something like it. Lucy took note of his expression and she felt sad. Natsu probably hadn't slept or sat on something that wasn't a metal or plastic bench in who knows how long.

"Natsu, thank you for coming with me. I know it must seem crazy that one day someone would walk up to you and say, ' _come on an adventure with me'_ but I meant it. Who knows, maybe it was fate. All I know is you're here and we're going to have the best time ever. Okay?" She squeezed his hand then moved to sit down on the couch. "Ahhh… This is nice." She closed her eyes, letting herself relax.

The pink haired man sat himself across from her. His eyes studying her again. Maybe it was fate she was here. Maybe he did something that caused him to be blessed like this. He wasn't going to complain, not yet anyway. For now, he was going to let go of his worries… And probably make use of that bathroom they have. He couldn't imagine he smelled great. Despite he made sure to wash himself, it was hard doing so out of a sink in an airport restroom. He made plans to use what he was given for now and wait till life decided to throw him to the dogs again.

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 **1) This just might be the longest I've ever written something.**

 **2)Holy shit have y'all seen some of those really expensive first class travel planes? Like shiiiiit. I want like 3.**

 **3)The plane they are in is based off of Etihad Airways first Apartment. Y'all can look it up. It's crazy. But yeah… I was looking up flights from New York to Australia and they came up so I used them.**

 **4)I know I have another story I'm working on but this one is now taking my all my time. I'll finish the other one later.**

 **5) I'm going to try and write a couple chapters before I post again. I want to get deeper into the plot so I have a good story line.**


	2. Chapter 2

**BLESS YOUR SOUL~ I WROTE ANOTHER CHAPTER. I apologize for the multiple grammar errors and incomplete sentences in the previous chapter. I will go back and fix them at some point. I tried to watch out for them in this chapter so hopefully I didn't do too bad.**

 **Thank you to all who reviewed! Y'all the best!**

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The steamy water beat down against Natsu's back as he washed all the grime and sweat off him. It felt weird getting a real shower after so long of washing yourself with a cloth and out of a sink. Who knew showers were the best damn things ever. Natsu leaned his head against the wall letting the soapy water fall off his body. _Damn fate and this blondie… I don't think I've ever made such a stupid mistake._ His stomach was churning as his motion sickness started to wear off.

"Damn every moving transportation…" He grunted. He switched off the water and stepped out. As he dried off, he took some more medication. It had only been about four hours since they got on. He couldn't tell what Lucy had been doing the whole time because she had her face stuffed in a book. He felt awkward. He didn't know her and he couldn't tell if she wanted to talk to him or not. He figured they would get to know each other throughout the trip. Maybe when he went back he would strike up a conversation. "What the hell am I doing?" Natsu muttered under his breath.

He was 25 and alone. He had been 'officially' homeless for 7 years. Before then, he still had friends that let him hang around. He would find shelters to take him in. He still occasionally found shelters, but it was just easier to hang around the airport. People never gave you a second glance if you were sleeping on a bench and he had memorized the security's route. He knew where to be and when to leave. Sometimes, mostly during summers he would camp out in the parking garage for weeks. He wouldn't get caught and people always had loose change falling out of their cars. Life wasn't easy, but it wasn't terrible. He made off pretty easy by living in an airport.

He glared at himself in the mirror. What was he thinking getting on this plane with a stranger. What was _she thinking_ bringing a stranger with her to a foreign country? Maybe they were both crazy. He looked down at his arm and pinched himself.

"Ouch!" He rubbed the sore spot. Nope. He wasn't dreaming. Which meant this was real and he was actually going to Australia. Suddenly he felt sick, but not from the plane itself. He was scared and nervous because who knew what would happen when they landed. Would she still want him to tag along? Would she leave him? He had no clue how things in Australia worked. _Why am I on this damn plane!?_

He finished putting on the borrowed pajamas, and his scarf, and peered over at the bag that Lucy had brought with them. Natsu pulled out the slippers and slid them on his feet. A bit snug but comfy none the less. He would have to thank her when he got out.

Lucy probably read the same three pages in a row. Her head had been spinning around the fact she just brought a stranger with her on the plane. _What had I been thinking!?_

"I'm insane. Someone needs to lock me away." She muttered as she threw the book to the other side of the couch. She sprawled herself out put an arm over her eyes. "What would Levy think… What would _Leo_ think? Leo would probably send the army after me…"

"Who is Leo?" Lucy jumped at the sudden voice. Turning to face Natsu, she couldn't help but smile. He looked ten times cleaner than before and with the borrowed pajamas you couldn't tell that he had ever been homeless. She brushed her blonde hair out of her face and smiled at him.

"You look good." She noticed his slight blush and watched as his hand brushed through his now brighter pink locks. They were probably brighter due to the dirt being washed out. He mumbled a thanks, "Leo is one of my bodyguards. I left him behind in America."

"You have bodyguards?" Natsu shook his head trying to rid himself of the excess water. This girl must be something if she had bodyguards and the money to afford this plane.

"Well, yeah. My father was a huge business man. He had many corporate offices around the world. Since he was so rich and a major competitor to other companies, it was in his best interest to hire some people to protect him when he traveled. The amount of people increased once I was born and he wanted to make sure no one could harm me." Lucy shrugged. Natsu took a seat across from her and opened a water bottle he took.

"Your dad sounds like he cared a lot about you." The pink haired man saw as a bit of pain flashed through her eyes.

"I guess…" She trailed off. Lucy had no clue about his man and she wasn't about to start spilling _too deep_ of personal information. She was curious about him though. Maybe he would be okay with her asking him a few questions. "Are you hungry?"

Thankful she finally asked, Natsu nodded like a madman. "Hell yeah." Almost like an echo, his stomach let out a massive growl. His face flushed the color of his hair while Lucy tried to hold back a laugh.

"Don't be embarrassed. At least it wasn't while you were in the middle of taking a test. Now that's embarrassing!" Lucy giggle as she remembered her stomach going off in the middle of her college final. She swore every head in that class had turned to look at her. She cleared her throat and handed him a menu. "Order what you would like. I promise I won't be upset if it cost a lot."

Natsu eyed the menu while thinking about what she had said. _A test? She probably has gone to school…_ He thought to himself. Suddenly he felt a bit stupid. He wasn't always homeless but that didn't mean he went to school either. His father, Igneel, homeschooled him and while he did his best, Natsu never completed past the 6th grade level. He didn't care though. He could do basic math and read. That's all he needed and besides all that, Igneel taught Natsu more important things, like languages and culture. He was able to speak English, Japanese, Spanish, and French. He had been in the midst of learning German when his father disappeared but he knew enough to get him food and a bathroom if he were ever trapped in Germany. His life had changed when Igneel left and Natsu was determined to find him one day. To remind him of his goal, he wore his scarf from Igneel everyday. He hardly took it off.

"I think I'm going to have their waffles. Breakfast sounds good right now." Lucy's voice broke him out of his train of thoughts. "Mmm… Leo makes the best breakfasts."

"You're strange. This menu has a bunch of tasty looking food and you're going to go with the _waffles_?" Natsu accused. Lucy rolled her eyes at how insulted he sounded.

"Well yeah. I like waffles. There isn't anything wrong with my choice. I just don't feel like eating anything huge." She defended. Natsu rolled his eyes back at her. Lucy picked up that he probably had a playful nature to him and she wished he would show it more. Then again, their situation was pretty awkward. Perhaps she should talk about it while they ate.

A waiter came by and took their orders. While Lucy stuck with her waffles, Natsu had taken to ordering a spicy chicken pasta with a basket of bread rolls. While they waited, they managed to make small talk with each other. Natsu learned that Lucy had taken after her father and had gone to school to major in marketing and business, but she had also minored in fashion design. Lucy loved clothes and had always loved the dresses her mother had worn. So she wanted to one day make her own wedding dress and perhaps start a small business of wedding dresses.

When their food arrived, silence fell over them while they ate quietly. Despite the friendly small talk, it was beginning to dawn on both of them how crazy and rash they had been. It was creating tension between the two adults that you could almost see. Lucy was the first to break the silence.

"Are you nervous?" The blonde decided to face it head on. No more pretending like they weren't strangers. Natsu scrunched his face at the question,clearly confused.

"Why would I be nervous?" A bit of chicken and sauce tumbled out the side of his mouth when he talked. Lucy grimaced at the unappealing man.

"To be honest, I'm nervous. I don't know you and I had been so caught up with going on this adventure that I didn't really think about what I was doing. I don't regret inviting you, but I'm nervous because you're a stranger to me. I'm afraid this was a mistake." Her concerns weighed heavy on Natsu. She was right. The pink haired man was a stranger, and while he assumed she was most likely a safe person, he knew she had nothing to go on with him except that he hasn't killed her yet. He swallowed the bit in his mouth and wiped his face on the pajama sleeve.

Lucy felt her eyebrow tick. _I'm going to have to teach him proper manners…_

"I'm sorry I haven't given you reason to trust me. I just didn't know if it was okay. Just like you, I'm worried. I haven't had anyone show me true kindness in awhile, ya know?" He scratched at his neck and continued. "I'm shocked and I have to keep pinching myself to know this is real. I mean _come on_! When was the last time you heard of a homeless man being picked up and taken on a grand world tour? It's not exactly an everyday thing. We were both probably too caught up in our own wants that we didn't think this through. But… for some strange reason, my gut is telling me to trust you. So I'm going to." By the time he ended, Lucy was staring at him with an unreadable expression.

"So… What you're saying is that in the past five and a half hours we've been on this plane, you've decided to trust me?" Natsu nodded then raised an eyebrow when her expression turned mischievous. " _You're lucky to be alive if that's how you throw your trust around_." Lucy mocked while waving her hands around in a sarcastic manner. She couldn't resist and knew she made the right choice when she saw a smile tug at the corner of his lip.

"Oh, so you think you're a comedian, eh?" Lucy continued to laugh as she found herself to be hilarious. Natsu shook his head at the blonde. She was weird. He liked it. "Well, I doubt you could make a career of it." He retorted. The girl only stuck her tongue out at him. "Well, whatever. I do trust you and if I give you any reason to think I might hurt you, I give you permission to leave my ass in any country."

"Promise?" Lucy stuck out her pinky finger at him. _Childish._ Natsu thought, but nonetheless wrapped his own pinky finger around her. "I promise."

"So, Why do you wear that scarf all the time?" She had been curious about it since she met him. It seemed worn and old.

"My dad gave it to me when I was a teenager. It's kind of all I have left of him." He shrugged trying to act nonchalant about it. Lucy nodded. She understood. It was important to keep the things your parents gave you. Time is never kind to those who never keep the gifts of their parents.

After finishing up their meals, Lucy went ahead and showered. Natsu took that time to set up his couch into a bed. He wasn't going to deny the fact he was super excited about this night's sleep. Maybe when he wakes up he will finally be relieved of the sore back he's had looked up and grinned when he saw Lucy approaching from the bathroom also wearing some borrowed pajamas.

"Look, we're twins!" She joked. The pajamas were unisex on the plane so it consisted of a white button up silk shirt and some white silk pants.

"We look nothing alike." Natsu deadpanned. Lucy rolled her eyes and got out a pillow and blanket for herself. After quickly making her own makeshift bed, she buried herself under some covers.

"We should get some sleep. We'll be landing in Australia pretty early in the morning. I think Scorpio said it would be around 6:30a.m. I've set an alarm for 5 hours from now. After all, Australia is like a day ahead of us. It's like we're traveling into the future! I think sometime while we're sleeping we'll hit that time zone change. With my alarm, we should have an hour before we land to get ready." The blonde saw Natsu swig some water with some sleeping meds. Then chuckled when he whined at her.

"Really? We're only getting 5 hours of sleep?" She should've told him that before he was taking the medication. "Good luck getting me up."

"I'll find a wayyyy.." She trailed off with a yawn. "For now, let's sleep. Sleep well, Natsu."

Getting himself comfy, he watched as the lights dimmed around the plane. He glanced outside the window and noticed it was pretty dark outside. Sleep sounded and good and so far this couch felt like heaven."Yeah, okay. G'night Lucy."

* * *

Lucy awoke to her alarm bells ringing in her ears. With a deep sigh she finally reached over and turned off her phone. Sitting up, she lifted her arms over her head and stretched, feeling satisfied when her stiff back popped. The blonde checked the tv screen and saw in the corner that the plane would be landing in 45 minutes. _I guess I better get out of these pajamas._

After changing into some purple sweatpants and a grey t-shirt, she slid on her matching purple jacket and checked the time.

 _5:55a.m._

Her brown eyes peeked over at Natsu's sleeping form. He was turned on his side with an arm draped over the couch side while the other was tucked snugly under his head. His pink hair looked tousled and his snores came out like chainsaws. Lucy beamed at him. He looked so peaceful, comfy, and cute…

 _CUTE!?_

Her innerself was scolding her thoughts. How was snoring like a gorilla's yell cute? But at least she had managed to sleep through it. Now wasn't the time to be thinking about these sort of things. The plane was going to land soon and Natsu had to get out of those borrowed pajamas. Standing over him, Lucy started poking his face.

"Natsuuu! Time to wake up!" Her finger sunk into his cheek and she chuckled when his face twisted in discomfort. "Come on. We gotta get ready to go- WOAH!"

Suddenly Lucy found herself pushed up close and personal with Natsu. He had managed to grip her and and roll him and her over so that she was laying on top of him. Lucy blushed as she realized his face was buried deep in her breasts.

"Mmmm… so squishy." Natsu murmured. Her face was on fire by this point and with all the strength she could gather from her position, she pushed herself away from him. Unfortunately, her balance wasn't as stable as she had thought and she went tumbling down, bringing a helpless and now a very awake Natsu with her.

"What the hell is going on?" Natsu shuffled about on the floor, wiggling like a fish on deck. Finally, he managed to roll over and prop himself on his elbows. He felt something soft under his arms and saw that a bit of blonde hair was captured under them. When he followed his gaze more to the left he saw Lucy lying on the floor next to him, her face scrunched in pain.

"Ouch…" When she tried to sit up her hair yanked her back down with a painful tug. "Double ouch."

"Oh, sorry." Natsu lifted his arms and sat up, and watch as Lucy did the same. She rubbed her head and then scowled at the man. Confused, he raised his arms. "What did I do?"

"Forget it. Just don't ever get cozy like that between my boobs again." With that, Lucy stood up and went to move about the plane. Natsu was left to stare after her with a bewildered expression. After deciding he really didn't care enough to know what she meant, he headed to the bathroom to change back into his clothes.

When they finally departed from the plane, they gathered in the carpool lane of the airport. Lucy had already promised Natsu to take him shopping so he wouldn't travel in just that one outfit. Even though he insisted this was all he needed, Lucy wouldn't hear of it.

"You need some clean clothes. It's not good for your hygiene." She argued. He wasn't able to come back with a retort because soon she was smiling like crazy and waving her arms in the air. "Scorpio!"

Natsu looked the way she was waving and saw a black suv pulling up next to them. A large man stepped out in a sharp red tux, matched with a black tie. His hair was parted down the middle and one side was white while the other red. His smile was devilish and Natsu immediately felt a sense of respect for the man. Not everyone could pull off a look like that. Natsu would know with his own pink hair.

"We are, Lucy, I gather you had a nice trip?" He extended his hand out to Lucy's and she reached back her pale skin contrasting against his dark.

"Yeah! The plane was lovely!" She removed her hand from his and went to put her luggage into the car. Scorpio followed her to assist but halted when he made eye contact with Natsu.

"We are, who is this, Lucy?" Natsu and Scorpio kept a steady gaze at one another. Lucy fidgeted with her hands. She forgot that everybody was expecting Levy and no one would be happy to hear she picked up a homeless man. She had to think quick.

"Oh, this is Natsu. He's a friend of mine who filled in for Levy. Levy had to cancel last minute and luckily he was free!" Hopefully no one would ask how she knew him. Thankfully, he was washed and looked clean.

Finally, Scorpio grinned and reached his hand out again. "We are, nice to meet ya, Natsu." Natsu nodded and shook his hand. "Where are your bags?" Scorpio looked around but could only find Lucy's three different purple luggage's.

"Since it was last minute I just told Natsu I would buy him new clothes just to make sure he would get to the plane on time!" She laughed nervously and patted her bodyguard on the shoulder. Scorpio seemed satisfied with her answer and left to load up the suv. Lucy leaned next to Natsu. "Please don't tell anyone I don't know you. If they find out you're a stranger, they will go into overprotective mode. That is one mode you do not want activated." She shuddered. Natsu agreed. He didn't want to anger these people. As tough as Natsu was from living on the streets, he could probably bet they had guns hidden somewhere on them.

"Yeah, I wouldn't mind living another day." He sweat-dropped as he saw Scorpio watching him with an evil gleam to his eye. He followed Lucy into the vehicle and sat quietly while they drove to the hotel.

"Oh, crap!" Lucy hit her palm to her forehead. Both men in the car glanced at her with concern. "Sorry, I just remembered that Levy and I were going to share a hotel room. I didn't account for Natsu…" She turned to him and frowned. "I don't think either of us would be comfortable in the same room."

The pink haired man nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I wouldn't mind getting my own room."

"We are, the hotel should have plenty of spare rooms. I'm sure booking another one will do them no harm." Scorpio answered. As they were stopped at a red light, he texted his partner to book another room, preferably close to Lucy's as her request.

Much to Natsu's surprise, they pulled up in front of a tall, white tower. It looked to have about ten floors with each room contains a balcony. He eyes lit up in wonder and Lucy found it to be a charming expression on his face. Something close to a child on Christmas. Scorpio opened the door for them and escorted them into the building where a tall woman with a threatening gaze met them. She was dressed in a navy suit and her hair straightened down her back.

"Aquarius!" Lucy excitedly approached the woman only to be shot down with a sneer. Lucy shrunk into herself and sheepishly back away. "What did I do this time?"

"I don't know. Maybe asking me to find another room at the last minute that would be conveniently close to yours might be a bit more troublesome than you imagined." Her tight tone matched her glare. Aquarius flipped her long blue hair over her shoulder and sauntered over to Scorpio. "I'm sorry, baby. I did the best I could but I'm sure you agree that Lucy is so needy with her requests."

"ALL I DID WAS ASK FOR ANOTHER ROOM!" Her words went deaf upon the couple as they began a smooch fest. "Bleck…" She stuck her tongue out at the two and wished they wouldn't do that.

"I take it she doesn't like you." Natsu stated as he stood to the side with his arms crossed. It had been a funny encounter to watch, but he did feel bad that Lucy got shot down. She had seemed so happy to see that Aquarius woman. Lucy faced him and rolled her eyes.

"It's complicated. She basically was my only friend growing up. I guess the image of a whiny little 7 year old never left her mind."

"I suppose that would be complicated." He cleared his throat. "Hey, uh, Lucy… Do you think we could check in now? I really gotta go take a leak."

"Gross…" Disgusted by his choice of words, she made a second mental note to teach him some manners. "Yeah. Let's go."

After getting both the keys to their rooms , they got in the elevator to go to the third floor. Before it had even started moving, Natsu collapsed on the floor. Lucy had managed to drag him off the elevator when it made it to their floor.

"You're pathetic." Lucy stated as she slumped Natsu against his door. Natsu finally felt stable enough to stand on his own. He glanced around the hallway and noticed it looked just like a regular hotel hallway.

"What, no penthouse suite?" He teased. He grinned when he managed to get a reaction out of her. She had given him her best scowl. Too bad it didn't compare to Aquarius'.

"It's already a nice enough hotel. I didn't need to spend the extra money on rooms we're going to be in for only a couple nights." Lucy explained. Besides, he wouldn't be complaining too much when he saw the rooms. Each room came with a kitchen and a separate table for eating. That way if they wanted room service they wouldn't have to sit in their beds and eat. Although, that may just be what he wanted to do.

"We were on the plane for 13 hours…"

"If I have to be on a plane for more than 5 hours I'm going to get one where I can lay down and take a nap."

Natsu just smirked at her. She was fun to tease. "Whatever you say, Loony."

"IT'S LUCY!" With that she threw his card key at him and turned to the door across the hall and unlocked hers. "GOODNIGHT, NAT-POO."

Natsu cackled all the way till he managed to reach his own bathroom in his room. He relieved himself and when he was finished washing up he went out to survey his room. It was almost like an apartment. There was a kitchen at the entrance and a table placed next to it along with a couch and tv across from the table. The bedroom had its own door and the bathroom was privately located in the room.

"Not bad." He made himself comfy on the couch and looked through the tv channels. He chose to let himself fall asleep to the discovery channel showing the life of a sea turtle. But before he closed his eyes he couldn't help but feel a bit… lonely. In the time he had spent with Lucy he had grown accustomed to her. Now that he was back on his own, even if in his own room and even with knowing she was across the hall, the quiet seemed to be too loud for him.

* * *

 **1) Again, I'm on a roll with writing more than 3000 words. I had a lot of this chapter written when I published the first, so the next time I update it may not be so soon. Please understand that I like to have a good amount of the next chapter done before I upload the one I finished.**

 **2) The reviews were awesome! I seriously can't thank you guys enough. Also thank you to everyone who favorited this story and followed it!**

 **3) I plan on getting to the adventure stuff soon. Maybe but right now, my plan is they just landed in Perth and they're going to do some adventures near there. Then road trip it all the way to Exmouth for the whale sharks! So stay tuned!**

 **4) I also hope I got the anxiety they were both feeling made clear. As you know, getting on a plane with a stranger is not smart, neither is asking a homeless person to join you. I wanted to at least make it semi realistic. So there you have it. Both parties realized they made a rash decision.**

 **5) If I get anything wrong about Australia, I'm sorry. I've never been and I'm just doing my research online. So I don't even know if I got the time zones right, but let's just pretend I did.**

 **THANKS AGAIN AND PLEASE REVIEW! REVIEWS ARE SUPER HELPFUL FOR INSPIRATION AND QUICK WRITING!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys! I'm sorry this took so long to come out! But please enjoy!**

 **Also, PrincessBluetree your reviews are so lovely and I thank you so much! I miss Aquarius too. She was amazing!**

 **dolphintale204- I really like your idea of them getting lost so I may use that within the next couple chapters!**

 **Thanks again to everyone that has reviewed so far! You guys are the best!**

* * *

So far, on their second day of travel, Lucy had managed to buy Natsu a whole new wardrobe, feed him at twice, and hit him on the should at least six. Best part, it wasn't even noon yet.

"Lucy.. I'm bored. Can we be done with shopping?" He rubbed at his eye trying to get the sleep out of them. She had decided to get shopping done early so that way they could do some adventures in the afternoon. Unfortunately, she didn't chance herself with waking him up like last time. So, she sent Aquarius in. Despite Lucy facing a pissed off woman all day, at least she had a dressed and ready-to-go Natsu by ten a.m.

"No. You only got three shirts, two sweaters, and two pants. You need at least another pair of pants." Lucy argued. Then brightened when she remembered the other things. "Shoes! You also need shoes!"

Natsu groaned but followed behind her anyway. Scorpio was acting as their tour guide, showing them where the best restaurants were and how to find the best deals on clothes. Aquarius had stayed at the hotel, planning a day trip for them when they returned. So far, neither of her bodyguards were suspicious of Natsu. It helped calm her frantic nerves and she knew it was helping Natsu feel a bit more open to being himself. Lucy enjoyed seeing Natsu become more of a person than a drone. He was different from what she expected but she was okay with that. Natsu Dragneel was a very interesting human, and the more she knew him, the more he became an adventure in himself.

Finally, around 1 o'clock, they all sat down at a local diner and grabbed some food. Lucy was happy with the progress they made today. At least Natsu had more clothes to wear and more clothes with _style_. Even if he did insist on wearing that scarf with everything. Lucy, with her sense of style, had found shirts that looked good with a scarf and was pleased to say looked good on Natsu. After they ate, they arrived back at the hotel to meet with Aquarius.

"About time you made it back." The fierce woman loomed over the two young adults with a menacing stare. Both started to mumble apologies and bowing to her. "Tch. I don't have time for your games. I made a schedule and you better stick to it."

Lucy took the schedule and looked at it. "Oh, Aquarius! This looks like a lot of fun!" First on the list was an Aquarium located outside of Perth. It was huge and supposedly had a large, glass tunnel you could walk through with sharks and sea creatures swimming around you. She guess with the way Lucy loved sea life they would spend a large sum of the afternoon there. Second, they had reservations for a ferry trip along the coast. It stopped at a reef mid-trip and allowed customers to dive in and take a look. Third, when they returned to the hotel the spa facility would have a reservation just for them.

Natsu leaned over her shoulder to take a look. "An aquarium, huh? Sounds like fun." Then his face turned green and he collapsed to the floor. "B-b-boat ride?"

Both Scorpio and Aquarius gave Lucy a look that was asking what the hell was wrong with him. The blonde just laughed it off and asked if either of them could get some motion sickness medicine for him. Of course, Aquarius did so but not before complaining that Lucy couldn't do anything herself.

"I DON'T KNOW WHERE TO GET MEDICINE AROUND HERE!" She shouted. Again, it was just a waste of breath for her. "Natsu, get up. We aren't even on the boat yet. Nor are we even near water!"

Slowly, Natsu stood and took a deep breath. "Sorry. Just thinking about it makes me, ugh, sick."

"It's ok. As soon as you take the medication you should be fine. For now, let's go ahead and change our clothes. You'll also need a swimsuit for the second activity." Lucy headed for the elevator while Natsu made his way to the stairs. He would avoid elevators all his life if he could.

Lucy got to her room first and decided to look her best. She picked out her white bikini with a pink flower in the top. After she changed, she found some light pink jean shorts and a white tank top with black palm trees in the center. It worked for her. She quickly pulled her hair into pigtails and completed her look with black flip flops.

"Perfect!" She grabbed her tote bag and placed all her needs in it then left to see how Natsu was doing. To her surprise, she saw him waiting for her outside her door. He was dressed in his orange swim trunks and a grey jersey tank top. Of course completed with his white scarf.

"You ready? Aquarius just dropped off the medication." He held out three boxes of medication and Lucy put them into her tote.

"I'm all set! Let's go!" She grabbed his hand and forced him onto the elevator where he was glad he had taken some medication. When they arrived to the front of the hotel, they saw Scorpio and Aquarius waiting for them. Together, they got in the suv and drove out to Hillary's coast to the aquarium. It was only about a 30 minute drive and Natsu managed to sleep the whole way.

Once they got out, Lucy was practically jumping up and down. Natsu had to admit it looked like a nice place and he wasn't going to lie, he was pretty excited too. He had never been to an aquarium before. Plus it was Australia's largest aquarium. He was tempted to pinch himself again.

"Alright, listen closely." Lucy and Natsu turned and saluted Aquarius. Aquarius smirked. "Scorpio and I will be near by if you need anything. I expect you all to have fun and _don't_ break anything." She hissed at them, causing them to sweat. "If you call us for no reason, I will dunk you both in the shark tank, understood?"

"We are, come on babe, let's go on and enjoy ourselves a while…" He gathered the swooning woman into his arms and off they went inside ahead of the two tourists. Both Natsu and Lucy looked disturbed.

"How does she go from mega scary to a mush puddle?" Natsu questioned.

"No clue." Lucy didn't care to know. Deep inside, she knew Aquarius cared for her, even if she would never admit to it. "Who cares, let's go on inside before it starts getting too busy!"

Natsu reached out for her hand this time and it was like they swapped personalities. "I'm all fired up! I wanna go see some giant squids!"

Lucy giggle as she followed behind his steps. It was an amazing aquarium with all sort of exotic fish from all over. Natsu grinned and pressed himself against every glas to get closer looks at the marine life. Natsu pointed at every shark, forcing Lucy's attention away from whatever had caught her interest. She didn't mind though. Seeing Natsu so happy and himself made her feel good. They walked around for about an hour and all the while Natsu had made Lucy both laugh and frustrated. He decided to find every ugly looking sea creature and name it Lucy. Of course the blonde retaliated by finding every pink fish and naming it Natsu.

"MY HAIR ISN'T PINK! IT'S SALMON!"

"Whatever you say, pinky." The blonde walked away to the next exhibit leaving behind the pouting man. Lucy found herself walking towards a glass cage filled with bright gold looking fish. Hr brown eyes were wide with wonder and awe. The fish were gorgeous and bright. They swam gracefully and when the light reflected off their scales, it seems like flashes of pure white light. Lucy fell in love with the way they looked.

"They're beautiful…" She stood by the glass just watching as each one made a shimmering path through the water. Behind her a few feet away, Natsu watched her. He didn't understand how out of all these amazing fish, she seemed to fall in love with those dingy yellow ones. He wasn't going to pull hr from her trance though. He too had been captivated by a golden color. He couldn't help but stare at her and truly see for the first time that she clearly wasn't some rich,spoiled brat. She was a girl who simply found beauty in everything. His heart skipped a beat when she turned and made eye contact with him.

 _What the hell?_ He thought. But when she smiled at him his heart did it again. _Am I broken?_

He decided to leave it alone for now and walked over to stand next to her. She still seemed to be captured by the fish and he looked down at the sign.

 **Golden Dorado (Salminus Brasiliensis)**

 **The golden dorado has a large head, with powerful jaws filled with sharp teeth. It reaches maturity around 37 cm (15 in) long, and is golden colored. The average size of the golden dorado is about 3–10 kg (6.6–22.0 lb). The largest recorded size is 100 cm (39 in) length and 31.4 kg (69 lb).**

"You're in love with some oversized goldfish?" He began to snicker and Lucy pouted at him. She slapped him on the shoulder but that only made his laugh harder.

"You are so infuriating! They are beautiful creatures!" She gestured to the tank in front of her. "They have to most beautiful golden color I've ever seen!" Natsu stopped laughing and then stared at her. He had an intense gaze in her that made her look away. "W-why are you looking at me like that?"

"Well 'cause I think your hair is a prettier than their scales." He stated. Lucy blushed and swiftly faced the fish again. They remained side by side silently for the next couple minutes. Natsu felt a bit foolish saying something like that outright and Lucy was still trying to calm her face down.

In the silence between them, Lucy started to realize that he was a good man. She still had many questions for him but decided that they should be answered in time. Right now, she was content with what she knew about him. Within the next half hour, they moved on from exhibit to exhibit, finally approaching the best part of the aquarium. It was the underwater glass tunnel. Lucy and Natsu stepped inside and gazed at the wondrous sights around them.

"Lucy, look!' Natsu tugged on her arm and pointed right above them. Swimming amongst the vast variety of creatures, was a massive great white shark. From where they were standing it must've reached at least 12ft. Lucy shuddered. She wasn't to fond of anything bigger than her that was a man eater. "Oh come on! Sharks are awesome!"

"I know that but looking at that thing gives me the creeps. I would hate to swim into one of his friends in the wild." Her eyes scoped the rest of the tunnel finding all sorts of beautiful sharks and fish swimming around. There were a lot of smaller sharks swimming around and Lucy was using her phone to take as many photos as she could. "I think the next exhibit is the one that houses the whale shark. Let's go!"

Lucy ran into the next room. It was dark except for the blue glow the ginormous tank gave off. In it was the largest creature she had ever seen. It was much larger than the shark they had seen earlier and it was littered with white spots. The head of the shark was wide and she could bet that it could swallow her whole if it wanted too. Thank goodness it fed on plankton.

"Holy shit. That's the biggest fish I've ever seen." Natsu stood in disbelief as the size of the whale shark. It swam along with many of the tinier fish and circled around the the glass of the tank. It's side fin brushed along the window and Lucy reached a hand out. The fin passed along her hand and the blonde was amazed at the size difference.

"Can you believe we're going to swim with these in two days?" Her statement made Natsu's face go pale.

"What?"

"Yeah. I guess I forgot to mention the reason we are going to Exmouth is because they have section of the coast closed off so people can dive with the whale sharks." Her excitement was a huge contrast to the look on Natsu's face.

"Uhh… Lucy?" He didn't want to kill her excitement but he really also didn't want to drown. "I can't dive… Or swim."

The blonde giggled and waved a hand at him. "Natsu it's okay if you're nervous. But don't worry! They only eat plankton!"

He crossed his arms, a little aggravated that she thought he was making an excuse not to dive. Of course he was a little nervous but who wouldn't be? Either way, he was being honest. Igneel and him never lived near water and since Natsu liked land better than moving things he never bothered to put him in a pool. Water was always moving.

"I'm telling the truth. Igneel never taught me how to swim. We figured I'd just get motion sickness."

"Oh." Lucy was in a stump. How was she supposed to teach someone to swim and _dive_ within 2 days? She stared ahead of her watching the way the whale shark moved gracefully through the water. It reminded her of when she turned 8 and both Aquarius and Scorpio had flown in to New York for her birthday. Aquarius had even dressed as a mermaid and swam with her and her friends.

"Aquarius!" That was it! Aquarius had a license to teach diving. Swimming would be no problem for her! "She can teach you to swim and dive!"

"But she's scary." He shuddered as he pictured her trying to drown him.

"We don't have an option!" She tugged him closer to the tank and pointed up. "Don't you want to swim with one of these guys?"

If Natsu was honest, he wasn't sure. They were amazing creatures and being able to swim next to one would be a hell of an experience. Only, the thought of getting motion sickness made him sick. "I guess I do, but if I get sick I'm not going to. I'll just wait for you on shore or something."

"Sounds fair."

They finally met up with Aquarius and Scorpio after finishing the tour. Lucy told Aquarius all about how Natsu needed help swimming.

"No." the fierce woman crossed her arms. "I've got a date tomorrow with Scorpio."

That had been the end of the discussion. Lucy knew better than to ask twice when a date was involved. So, the blonde was miserable the car ride to the next event. Natsu wasn't worried.

"Hey, I'm ok. This is more your adventure than mine. You need to enjoy it more." He leaned over and whispered. When she looked at him with doubtful eyes, he gave her a reassuring smile. "I promise."

Something about his sudden gentleness made her chest feel warm. Her cheeks flushed so she faced away from him. _Get a hold of yourself, Heartfilia!_

Beside her, Natsu let out what sounded like a snort. She glanced over and saw him trying to stifle his laugh. Her eyes narrowed. "What's so funny, Dragneel?"

"I just can't believe you're real sometimes." His eyes were playful so Lucy knew he didn't mean that in any disrespectful way. "It's just so new to me having someone worry. Especially over the fact I won't go diving with whale sharks. This whole situation is so unreal it makes me laugh."

"I want you to enjoy yourself too." She placed her hand on his shoulder and leaned in so that Aquarius and Scorpio wouldn't hear her. "I know we haven't known each other long, but this is your adventure too. If there is anything you want to do, tell me. I'll try to make it happen."

Something again in his chest fluttered. He pulled away from her and nodded. For the rest of the ride, he stared out the window until they arrived at a doc, where a fast ferry was waiting for them. Natsu turned green to the face and quickly stuffed his mouth with medication. All four of the passengers got out of the car and neared the ship. Natsu was still slightly nauseous considering the medication hadn't yet kicked in. He was leaning against Lucy and both Scorpio and Aquarius were laughing at her. Childishly, she stick her tongue out at the couple.

"Welcome to 8 island's ferry! I am Ms. Evergreen!" A beautiful young woman greeted them once they reached the doc. Her brown hair was tied neatly in a bun and her uniform was a simple pair of brown khaki shorts and a green tank top with 8 island's logo on it. "Is this the Heartfilia party?"

"Yes! I'm Lucy and this is Natsu!" She manually moved Natsu's arm in a mock wave. "He's a bit sick right now but he should be good to go soon!" Scorpio and Aquarius introduced themselves next. As everyone was chatting, a very short man with a mustache appeared at the entrance of the boat.

"Hello! I am Mr. Yajima. I am your chef for the evening. I'm glad you've met Ms. Evergreen as she will be your waitress. I will have the rest of the crew introduce themselves as soon as we take off! I believe we have table for two set up?"

The blonde raised an eyebrow at her bodyguards. "Are you guys not coming along?"

Scoffing, the blue haired woman turned her head away. "Why would we tag along when Scorpio and I could have some alone time?" She leaned against her man.

"We are! Yeah, Lucy. My babe and I need our time. We are! Trust us, you are in good hands!" he scoops up Aquarius and they begin to walk away.

"Gross." Lucy scowled.

"You're just mad that I have a boyfriend and you'll never get a man with your attitude!" Aquarius shot at her over Scorpio's shoulder.

"I'M SINGLE BY CHOICE!" She didn't know why she bothered anymore. "Well, I guess it's just going to be Natsu and I tonight, Mr. Yajima!"

With a smirk, the old man waved them on the boat. "Right this way."

With a struggle, Lucy heaved Natsu onto the boat and followed along Mr, Yajima. He brought them to the second story on the boat where there was a lovely table set for two. She stuffed Natsu into the chair and took the seat across from him. His head fell onto the table and drool was coming out the side of his mouth.

"Hey, Luce… I think the medicine is starting to work." His head lifted about and inch then fell right back. "Give me 5 more minutes."

She rolled her eyes and smiled. He sure was something when he was sick. Even more of something when he wasn't. She enjoyed his company and each time he made her smile, she felt more secure in her choice of bringing him along.

"We will leave port in about 15 minutes. Until then, I shall have the rest of the crew com and tell you more about the boat and the plans for the evening." Mr. Yajima bowed and left to attend to the kitchen. Lucy was so excited because she had read so many reviews saying that once the boat got going, part of the crew did entertainment. The boat also stopped around the time the sunset so that people could view it from the best angle. 'Stunning' was popular word among the reviews.

"Uhgg… Okay. I'm ready to eat. My stomach need something to settle itself." Natsu finally sat up straight enough to be able to make coherent sentences. Just then, a tall man with long green hair approached them wearing a similar uniform to Evergreen. He had a red shirt with 8-Island's logo on it and khaki board shorts.

"Welcome, I am Freed. I will be your lifeguard for the evening. This boat makes two stops along the trip. One right by the coast and another father out at sea. Both time you will be able to swim alongside the boat." His tone was professional but still friendly. Lucy found herself thinking he was attractive. "Our captain on ship tonight is Bickslow. He will appear during these stops so you may ask him anything you would like. We have Mr. Yajima in the Kitchen who shall prepare your food to your liking and Ms. Evergreen will deliver it. Any questions you may have you can find me or any of the other crew members." He flashed a smile and Lucy felt her cheeks blush. Maybe she had a thing for guys with weird hair colors?

"Thank you, Mr. Freed. We are very excited to be here!" Lucy chimed.

'Yeah, should be fun. Anyway, you got any bread sticks or something?" Natsu asked, Thankfully he wasn't feeling too bad anymore.

"Natsu! Don't be so rude!" Lucy scolded. "You should ask more politely!"

Fredd was about to answer when a much larger man than himself walked up behind him.

"I got some bread right here." Lucy watched as Freed's eyes lit up and he spun on his heels.

"Laxus!? I didn't know you were going to be on board tonight!" Lucy sweatdropped as she swore she saw hearts in his eyes. _I guess I'm not going to get anyone's number tonight…_

"Eh, I wasn't. But I need cash because I'm running low on rent money." The tall man placed the bread on the table. Lucy took note of the tattoo that spread across his arm and disappeared into his own black uniform shirt. It looked a bit tribal which seemed to fit him. He also had a scar that stretched over his eye. He in his own way was very attractive she thought.

Natsu was observing the way Lucy bit her lip when both men had appeared. _She must think they're cute._ His stomach twisted and he was worried he was getting sea sick again. But it went away when she looked back at him. _I probably just need food._

"Oh, Laxus! I'm so glad we can work together tonight!" Freed clasped his hands together and leaned against him. "We could always use another lifeguard."

"I guess. Anyway, Evergreen is on her way up with menus. Any questions try and ask someone else besides me." He stuffed his hands in his pockets and trudged down the stairs to the main deck. Freed followed behind.

"Those two were weird." Natsu commented. He grabbed a piece of bread and stuffed it in his mouth. Lucy agreed and started to eat a piece of her bread, although she wasn't about to stuff it all in her face like Natsu.

"I think Freed has a crush on Laxus."

"What makes you think that?" Natsu asked as he reached for another roll.

"Did you not see the way he was practically drooling on him?" Lucy pointed out. "He practically had hearts in his eyes."

"Yeah, I guess I saw that too." He gazed at Lucy from the corner of his eye. He grinned wickedly. "You jealous?"

"WHAT!? NO!" Realizing her outburst was super unconvincing, she cleared her throat. "I meant, no."

"Whatever you say." Lucy was about to argue but Evergreen was coming their way with the menus.

"I'll give you guys a couple minutes to look over it. In the meantime, what can I get you to drink?"

She took out a notepad ready to write.

"I'll have a strawberry lemonade, please!" Lucy requested. Evergreen nodded and then faced Natsu.

"Uh, I'll have a coke."

Evergreen left to get their drinks. The blonde was looking over the menu and couldn't decide between the salmon special or the steak.

"Steak or salmon?"

"Why not get both?" Natsu was looking at the steak too. But the salmon sounded good as well. "Or I could order the steak and you order the salmon and we can split them."

Lucy grinned. "Great idea!" They both set the menus to the side. Suddenly, the boat jostled. Both young adults felt the shift and noticed that boat began moving. "Looks like we're taking off!"

She stood from her chair and skipped to the railing and peered over. The water beneath her shimmered and the waves crashed against the ferry. From behind them, the port began moving farther away while the sea lay spread out in front of her. Her hands itched to glide against the surface of the water. She couldn't wait till the first stop. Lucy had been so enchanted by the sea, she had never heard Natsu or Evergreen. Already, Evergreen had taken their orders and left without her noticing.

Natsu was still leaning back in his chair but his eyes were caught on Lucy. Her pigtails swirled around with the breeze and she repeatedly stood on her toes to lean farther over the railing. He was almost afraid she would flip right over. Something was begging him to join her, He gave into that feeling and went to join his companion.

"Isn't it lovely?" Lucy asked once she felt his presence next to her. Natsu tried to see what she was seeing but failed. It was just water to him. Nothing to get all amazed at, but he didn't want to crush her mood.

"Yeah, it's really something, Luce." He grinned at her with a thumbs up. Lucy smiled back.

When the food arrived they ate and watched as each crew member performed a talent. Evergreen and Bickslow had done a dance while Freed had done some exercises with some swords and taught them how to write calligraphy. Laxus had gone around and given both Natsu and Lucy temporary tattoos on their arms. When the boat stopped finally to watch the sunset, Lucy and Natsu were given a chance to swim off the side of the boat. Lucy had been quick to strip down to her bikini and jump in. Natsu on the other hand was hesitant.

Then Lucy got back on the boat and promised to go in with him. Natsu agreed and he stripped down to his own swim trunks. Lucy couldn't avoid staring. He was hot. Like holy fuck hot. She quickly reminder herself she barely knew him.

"Okay… On the count of three, we both jump in. Got it?" Natsu nodded. He was positive that with Lucy he wasn't about to die. "One…" He got down in a crouching position next to Lucy. "Two…" He was ready. Then out of nowhere he realized he was being pushed. "THREE!" Then he was falling. He felt the coolness of the water surround him. His instincts kicked in and he frantically waved his arms around until he crashed through to the surface.

Lucy was doubled over laughing hysterically. "You should have seen your face!" Natsu should have been mad that she pushed him in, but seeing her smile like that, he just couldn't find it in his heart to be. Neither even realized that Natsu was swimming just fine within seconds of being in the water.

"Oh, Heartfilia, you are so going to pay for that." He smirked mischievously. The blonde made a face.

"Bring it, Dragneel!" She retorted. She was regretting her words as soon as she saw Natsu climbing back up the boat side. "Wait.. No!"

Before she knew it she had been slung over his shoulder and he was throwing her overboard. Between being thrown overboard or Lucy making an attempt to drown Natsu, neither had realized the sun was halfway to setting beyond the horizon. That was until they were called back on board so that they could depart back for land.

Halfway to land, Natsu and Lucy somehow had drifted off to sleep on a bench on the first deck. Natsu had been slouched and curled into Lucy's shoulder while Lucy had managed to lay her cheek on his head. When they arrived to shore, both Scorpio and Aquarius were waiting. Mr. Yajima had been polite enough to not wake either of the sleeping duo. He left that responsibility to the bodyguards. Somehow, they managed to get the two adventurers into the SUV without disturbing them.

"I think they had a good day." Aquarius commented while watching the two sleep in the rearview mirror. Scorpio nodded in agreement with his lover, and then they took off for the hotel. "Good thing I've got more planned in store for them tomorrow."

* * *

 **1) I'm so sorry this took so long. I couldn't find any time to write because of some family issues. I apologize!**

 **2) I hope you like this chapter. I'm excited for more adventures!**

 **3) If you know of any amazing things to do in Australia, let me know! Then tell me where they should go next! I've got some ideas but I love to see what you guys have to say.**

 **4)Holy shit, again I am sorry for how long this took. But it's almost 5,000 words. BOO YAH!**

 **5) Please review! They mean the world to me!**


	4. Chapter 4

**MERRY CHRISTMAS! I'm sorry I took forever to update. It's a busy time of year and not the easiest, am I right? I also for the life of me couldn't get myself to write due to family issues. *sweats* Sorry! But I finished the chapter and have started the next! So no worries! I'll try to update sooner next chapter! Enjoy!**

* * *

Natsu woke up feeling like he used to back in New York. Except the salty smell on him was from the ocean and not sweat and it gave him a somewhat pleased feeling. He tucked his arms tighter under his pillow hoping to get more sleep but unfortunately the smell was starting to get to him. At least the smell brought back good memories of yesterday.

Finally, he sat up in bed and focused on his surroundings. Natsu realized he was back in the hotel in his room. He assumed that Scorpio and Aquarius brought them back and put them in their rooms.

"I guess we didn't make our spa reservations…" He mumbled to himself. Natsu stretched out all his muscles and swept his feet over the side of the bed. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a letter next to his alarm clock.

 _Good morning!_

 _Hope you slept well! Feel free to order room service because you have the morning to yourself! I will be back at noon to help pack for our trip to Exmouth!_

 _See you soon!_

 _-Lucy_

The young man put the letter to the side after reading it. That left him two hours before Lucy would be back and in the meantime he would be able to shower and get some food. _Shower first._

He couldn't help being excited about the fact he had been able to take a shower whenever he wanted. It was something he truly missed about having a home. He also wondered why Lucy hadn't asked him how he became homeless. That was usually everyone's first question. Instead, she focused more on his personality, which he liked about her. She was more curious about _him_ rather than _his story_. He felt human around her.

After drying off and getting on some of his new clothes, he grabbed the menu next to the stand and found another set of varieties for food selections. He decided on some blueberry pancakes and bacon. He had called and placed his order which they promised to have delivered within 20 minutes. Even after his breakfast, it would still be an hour before Lucy returned. How was he supposed to pass time?

Natsu sighed and plopped himself down on his bed. It was quiet in his room, which made him unsettled. No matter where he had been living, it had always been noisy. Both the airport and and homeless shelter he managed to stay in. Silence was just something he wasn't used to. He fumbled around the blankets tossing his arm over to the nightstand and grabbed the tv controller. He skimmed through channels until he finally settled on a informative documentary about the sea life in the Pacific Ocean.

* * *

Somewhere in the city of Perth, Lucy was busy looking for a gift for Natsu. She decided that if they were to have to split up anytime during their trip, they should be able to contact each other. So here Lucy was deciding what type of phone to get him.

"I don't know, Aquarius… What if he doesn't like the size of this one?" Lucy was stuck choosing between two phones is her hands, the one in her left being slightly larger than the other.

"Tch, Who cares? Just get him a stupid flip phone." Aquarius had been dragged around all morning with Lucy getting supplies for their road trip, and was getting irritated that they had been in a phone shop for the past 40 minutes. "Why doesn't he have his own phone anyway?"

Lucy almost dropped the phones as she sputtered out her response. "W-well it's because I-I asked him to come right away he must've forgotten his at home." She carefully placed both phones back on the display shelf.

Aquarius gave her a suspicious glare, then turned and walked out the store. Lucy gulped. She hoped Aquarius wouldn't decide to dig up history on Natsu. She looked around the store once more before picking out a basic touch screen phone. She looked through the colors it came in and chose the red. She felt that it would fit Natsu well. After she got the phone set up with her cell service, she quickly installed her number into its contacts. When she left the store, she found Aquarius waiting by the car.

"Let's go! We're done!" She hopped into the car and was excited to get back to the hotel. She was pleased with herself and was hoping to surprise Natsu with her gift. Aquarius followed the blonde into the car and together they headed back to the hotel.

* * *

"Man… I am so full." Natsu rubbed his stomach as he placed the his fork on his tray. He checked the time and realized Lucy should be back soon. "I'll go ahead down to the lobby to meet her!" The empty room was his only response. _Well, maybe I should pack my bags first since she said we would be leaving soon after she returned._

After finding the suitcase Lucy had bought for him, he shoved all of his new clothes inside. Neatness wasn't something he was good at so he didn't care about the fact his clothes would be wrinkled by the next time he opened the luggage. His appearance never mattered to him, even before he was homeless. Although, he had noticed his hair was growing out longer than he liked. He sorted through all the bags, making sure he wouldn't accidentally throw anything out and when he finished, he rolled the suitcase next to the door.

 _Knock knock._

"Natsu? It's Lucy!" Her voice called out through the door. The door opened and Natsu moved to the side to let her in. "Oh, looks like you've already packed up all your things."

"Yeah. You were taking too long." He teased. The blonde ignored his comment and turned to face him.

"Well, that's too bad. Maybe I shouldn't have gotten you something while I was out then." Her tone was mocking him as she held up a neatly wrapped up box and waved it front of his face. "Then I would have been back here earlier."

Natsu was dying of curiosity and anything from Lucy was probably the best gift ever. "I needed to pack anyway so if anything you gave me extra time to pack! Thanks, Lucy!" His grin was too cheesy and Lucy giggled at him.

"I guess I won't return it. Here ya go!" Natsu took the package and ripped through the paper. Lucy bit her lip waiting to see his reaction. "I hope you like it. I just thought it would come in handy…"

Natsu stared at the box in his hand. "You got me a phone?" He set the paper to the side and opened the case. A bright red phone sid out and into his hand. His dark eyes flipped it between his hands. Natsu was in love with the color of it, afterall red was his favorite color. "I like it. Thanks, Lucy."

They sat together on the couch while Lucy taught him how to use it. She told him that he had unlimited calls and texts so he could get in contact with her at anytime. She even downloaded a couple games for him to play. He seemed to like the virtual world of dragons the best. She left him to play with his phone so that she could go back to her own room and pack up her stuff. Scorpio had went ahead and got the car ready for their travel.

Within the hour, Natsu and Lucy were packed up and sitting in the car watching the view change as they traveled across the coast. Natsu was still playing his phone games and Lucy fidgeted with her own between her hands. Lucy tried to catch glimpses of the sea just beyond some of the buildings. Each time they drove over a bridge a sliver of the ocean peeked over the skyline.

 _Bzzz_

Her phone vibrated in her lap. It was a text.

" _Why are you making a weird face?"_

The blonde twisted her head to glare at Natsu. Except he was completely avoiding her by staring out the window. She pursed her lips and wrote back.

" _What are you talking about!? :c"_

Natsu had to hold in a chuckle when he felt his phone vibrate in his lap. He casually looked down and mocked surprise like he hadn't been expecting a text. He felt Lucy glare even harder at him. Despite the fact he wanted to laugh, he kept his composure and opened it. His lip tugged at the corner.

" _You keep making faces out the window. Makes you look weird."_

Lucy pounded her fingers across her screen, causing Aquarius to look back at the scowling girl in the rearview mirror.

" _I'm sorry I'm weird looking! I'm just enjoying the view!"_

Lucy kept her eyes on her phone waiting for it to buzz. When it did, it wasn't from Natsu. It was from Levy.

" _Hey Lu! How's it going down under? Did you find someone else to go with you?"_

Her phone went off again and this time it was from Natsu but she chose to ignore it for the time being to talk to Levy.

" _Levy! It's amazing here! I'm loving every minute. I did find someone to join me on this adventure although I still would have preferred you to come! How are you doing?"_

" _That's great, Lucy! After you left, I sat down with Gajeel and gave him the news. You would never believe it but he fainted! Like fell to the kitchen floor! So much for the tough guy act!"_

Lucy chuckled as she imagined her best friends boyfriend fainting. Gajeel was a very large man with several piercings that made him look extremely intimidating. The blonde knew she would never let him live it down that he fainted from being told he was going to be a father.

" _Seriously? Wow. Well, besides that are you guys doing okay?"_

" _Yeah! Gajeel is super excited. He's even in the middle of building a crib!"_

" _I'm so happy for you Levy!"_

Natsu kept peeking over at Lucy when she had suddenly stopped responding to his texts. It bothered him that she was still obviously texting but just not him. He couldn't help but wonder who she was talking to. She seemed really happy to be communicating with them. Something in his throat felt stuck when the thought of a boyfriend texting her came to mind, She had never mentioned one, but at the same time him and Lucy weren't exactly close friends.

"Who you texting, Lucy?" Natsu asked as he tried to lean over as casually as possible. Lucy tilted her phone away from his peering gaze.

"Why do you need to know? Jealous I'm not texting you anymore?" She teased. She saw hurt cross his face. Then she realized that Natsu probably didn't have anyone else to text like she did. Even if he did have friends, there was a low chance of them having phones. "Sorry. I'm texting my best friend Levy, the girl who was supposed to come with me. I'm just seeing how she is doing."

Natsu nodded in understanding. "She was pregnant, right?"

"Yup! Her boyfriend is super excited. He's even building a crib!" Lucy was enthusiastically waving her hands as she talked. Natsu found it cute that she became so invested in her own thoughts. "I just hope the baby looks like her because so offense to her man, but he's just not my type…" Lucy trailed off and her sight was set on something behind Natsu. "OH MY GOSH!"

Everyone in the car immediately became tense as they looked around to find what caused the blondes outburst. Natsu twisted around his seat to look out his window and the only thing he saw was a sign. It read 'koala petting zoo at next exit'.

"Let's go to the koala zoo!" The excited girl begged her companions. Natsu shrugged. He didn't see why they couldn't stop there.

"It would put a delay in our trip to Exmouth." Aquarius stated. Lucy pouted, leaning over her bodyguards chair.

"Aquarius… please? I'll give you and Scorpio a day off when we get to Exmouth!" Her brown eyes pleaded against Aquarius' blue ones. When Lucy saw Aquarius bite her lip and then face away from them, she knew she had won.

"Fine. We can go." Aquarius answered. Scorpio shook his head, smiling as he turned the wheel to take the upcoming exit. Lucy was good at exploiting his lovers weakness. Not that he minded. He was looking forward to the day off.

* * *

Natsu was the first one out of the car as soon as they parked. He fell to the ground kissing it. Even with the medicine, there still was nothing better than solid ground to him. The rest of the group climbed out and Lucy led the way to the zoo entrance. When they each got their tickets, Lucy and Natsu split from her protectors like they had at the aquarium, promising to meet back up later.

"Where do you want to go first, Lucy?" Natsu was looking down at the map in his hands and saw that there was much more than just Koala's. He personally wanted to go see snake house. He looked over at Lucy who was also taking a gander at the map.

"You know, I think you should decide where we go first. I'll let you lead the way!" She decided Natsu would have first choice in where they went. Lucy felt a little bad that since they had started this trip, she never really asked what he wanted to do. She made a mental note to herself to let him choose their first adventure when they landed in Exmouth.

"Then I think we should go to the snake house!" He charged down the path that led to his goal and left behind a very pale Lucy. The poor girl wasn't really fond of reptiles, but she wasn't going to let it ruin her companions excitement so she dragged herself behind him. Lucy entered the house when she caught up to Natsu and found it somewhat interesting. They had many glass cages lining the walls and a stage where a man was holding a rather small snake. There were people taking turns going up and touching the snake.

She looked around and saw Natsu looking inside one of the bigger cages. When she came to his side, she peeked over his shoulder to see what he was looking at. _Inland Taipan._

"Ew." She shuddered watching the snake slither slowly across the glass with its tongue flicking out. Natsu gasped at her.

"Ew? How can you say ew!? Reptiles are so cool! Besides, this guy is the world's most toxic land snake!" He waved his hands in front of the cage. "If it weren't for this glass we could be dead!"

"Double ew." Lucy removed herself from the surrounding area of the snake. Snakes were okay, but if they have poison, she wasn't going to stick around. That just made them extra creepy to her. She went ahead and neared the stage to watch the man and listen to what he had to say.

"Now this little girl is still young, but when she grows up, she can be up to 2.7 meters. She is known as a Woma Python. Would anyone like to come touch her?" The worker held out his wrist which the snake was wrapped upon. Lucy watched as a couple people went up, but wasn't surprised when she saw a bundle of pink hair move towards the stage. Natsu looked so interested with the snake and he kept asking questions to the mand and Lucy found it endearing. He had such a genuine interest she finally found.

"Lucy, come feel her!" Natsu waved her over and Lucy tried to disagree but he came over to her and pushed her up to the stage. With his hands still on her shoulders, he placed her right in front of the snake. "She's not going to hurt you. She's just a baby. Make sure to move your finger downwards and not upward though."

Taking a deep breath, she used her pointer finger to glide it across the snake. It was smooth and bumpy and it felt weird beneath her skin. As she kept her eyes on the snake, she realized perhaps they weren't so creepy and gross afterall. "She's kind of cute…"

"See? Snakes aren't that bad. Now come on, I'm pretty sure you want to see some Koalas." Natsu took her hand and led her away from the snake house. He never let go and neither of them said anything about it. Lucy and Natsu walked passed many other animals, always stopping to get closer looks.

When they came across a crocodile pond, Natsu ran to the fence. Lucy of course stood next to him but didn't like the idea of being so close to them.

"Sorry, they're way more scary than the snakes. Just look at their teeth!" Lucy began to back away when Natsu swept her legs out from under her as he picked her up in his arms. "Natsu put me down!" She flailed her arms and legs and when she saw he was lifting her over the fence she immediately wrapped her arms around his neck. "NATSU DO NOT THROW ME OVER THE FENCE!"

Natsu cackled at her. "Lucy, I would never actually feed you to crocodiles. Alligators… Maybe. But not crocodiles!" He felt her hands gripping tightly to his shirt in the back. "I'm going to put you down, okay?"

As her feet touched solid ground, she readjusted her clothes and then gave a swift hard kick to Natsu's shin, pleased when he yelped in pain. "If you _ever_ pull a stunt like that again, I will have Scorpio and Aquarius torture you the rest of your days." Her sickly sweet smile left him muttering apologies while holding his leg.

Natsu knew that her kick was going to leave a bruise but he just loved getting her riled up. The best way to do it was to act like he was going to throw her. Still, he decided to lay off for the remainder of the day. He stuck by her side walking through the rest of the park. Lucy refused to go back towards the crocodiles and Natsu couldn't resist making fun of her. "Afraid I'll throw you over?"

"Seeing as now for the past two days you've either thrown me off a boat or have threatened to feed me to the wildlife, I'm not exactly willing to go near any possible death pits." Her arms crossed and in doing so it pushed up her chest and Natsu couldn't resist the quick glance he did. He was still a man and he wasn't going to ignore the fact Lucy had a _very_ fine chest. He looked away feeling heat rise to his face.

"You take the fun out of everything." He mumbled. "Let's just go pet the damn koalas before it gets too late. I'm starting to get hungry." Lucy rolled her eyes but went ahead and followed his request. For the next hour Lucy and Natsu fed the koalas, taking as many selfies and pictures as they could. Natsu became addicted to the camera app making sure to take lots of picture of Lucy when she wasn't looking. They finally made it back to the entrance of the park where Scorpio and Aquarius were waiting.

"It's about time you two showed up." Aquarius scowled, ignoring the apologies from the young travelers. "Doesn't matter. Just get in the car."

"Can we get some food before we get traveling?" Lucy pleaded. Natsu stood behind the blonde with his hands in prayer position, obviously pleading for food as well.

"We are! Sounds like a good plan to me!" Scorpio nodded tossing the keys to Aquarius. "We are! You're driving till we get on the highway, babe!" Aquarius caught them in one hand, her scowl no longer on her face. Both Natsu and Lucy sweat-dropped with her easily persuaded demeanor.

"Very well, my love. Let's go."

* * *

The group found themselves parking in an outdoor cafe lot. Many picnic tables littered the patio along with a souvenir shop attached to the building, obviously trying to attract tourists. Lucy went ahead to the shop to pick out some trinkets to keep and some to give to her friends at home. Natsu on the other hand went straight for the food. He sat himself on one of the tables near the store making it easy for Lucy to find him when she was done shopping. He munched away on his sandwich while looking through some of the photos they took together. His favorite by far was a selfie of Lucy and himself while she was holding a Koala.

"Hey, how do I set photos as my wallpaper?" He asked Lucy when she arrived next to him with her own plate of food.

"Oh, that's easy. What photo do you want as your background?" Natsu handed her his phone with his favorite photo and Lucy blushed. It was a selfie of the both of them. "I like this one." She smiled and then led him through a step by step process of setting it as his phone background. Once it was set in place, Natsu was so pleased.

"Thanks, Lucy!" They went back to eating in a comfortable silence. Something was starting to bug at Natsu though. It was the thought of what he was to Lucy. Was he just a travel partner, or were they friends? By now Natsu most certainly thought of Lucy as a friend. In such few days, he had felt like he was growing a bond with her. Sure, maybe not _best_ friends, but he knew he considered her a friend. He wondered if she felt the same. "Lucy?"

"Yeah?" Lucy looked up from her food and Natsu smirked when he saw a piece of lettuce stuck to her mouth. The blonde obviously felt it and she quickly wiped her mouth.

"Are we friends?" HIs voice was quieter than normal. It's been years since he had called anyone a friend and now that there was a possibility she would consider him one, he was afraid of rejection. He wasn't sure what he would do if she said no. Lucy was so taken back by the question, she didn't know how to respond to him. In her mind of course they were friends. She realized though that years of being alone probably had an emotional affect on him.

"I think we are. I've enjoyed every bit of this trip and it's thanks to you, Natsu." She settled a hand on his shoulder and continued. "Friends make each other happy. You've made me happy."

Natsu was surprised at how confident she sounded and it made him feel welcomed. His chest swelled with happiness with the thought be finally had a friend again. He embraced Lucy in a tight hug. "Thank you. You've made me happy too."

Lucy returned the hug and enjoyed the feeling. It was their first hug. It felt so right to her.

"Let's go! We aren't going to make it to our hotel in time if we don't leave now!" Aquarius ordered. The travelers tore apart from each other and ran to the car to avoid facing any wrath from the woman of ice. Aquarius smirked and followed the young adults to the car. Natsu popped some medication before they got moving towards Exmouth. Lucy giggled when the car started moving before the medication had time to kick in. Natsu flopped to the side and his head landed in her lap.

"Oh, Natsu." She rested her hand on his head and stroked his hair. "Maybe with all of our trips you'll eventually get over your motion sickness." Natsu just muttered in response.

"Just wake me up when we get to Exmouth." He grunted and then got comfy and Lucy was going to protest using her lap as a pillow, but decided against it. They were friends and sometimes friends just needed to be used as pillows. Especially when their friends had severe motion sickness. She shook her head smiling as Natsu began snoring on her lap.

He was indeed a good travel companion. And… a good friend.

* * *

 **1) AWWWW. I MADE THEM FRIENDS. They're gonna be so cute.**

 **2) I just love the idea of Natsu messing with Lucy by picking her up. It's so fun!**

 **3) I'm sorry again for the late update. But I hope everyone has a great holiday and if you're not celebrating anything, just have a great day! You guys deserve it!**

 **4) I got a ninja coffee maker for christmas so you can bet late night writing will commence on weekends!**

 **4) Please review! They make my day! Thanks to everyone that has reviewed so far and favorited/followed! See you next update!**


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